Clinical electrotherapy devices have been used for over a century to treat many types of medical problems. During the past several decades, Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) has been used successfully as an alternative or adjunct to drugs for the symptomatic relief and management of pain syndromes. Typically, TENS devices temporarily block pain sensations by providing a milliampere level electrical signal that interferes with the ability of the affected nerves to transmit the pain signals to the brain. A problem with this electrical stimulation is the process known as habituation, accommodation or tachyphylaxis. Essentially, with increasing duration of TENS pain treatment approaches, the stimulated nerves become habituated to the electrical current, diminishing treatment efficacy. While TENS is known to block pain, it is not known to promote tissue healing.
With respect to the latter, Microcurrent Electrical Nerve Stimulation (MENS) therapy, which is at lower microampere levels, has shown tissue healing effects. However, the suite of MENS devices on the market have very specific restrictions on their abilities. For example, limited number of frequencies, a limited range of current intensities, some with timers, waveform/polarity limitations, and so forth. All of these prior art systems involve detailed setup and require active “during-treatment” control and adjustment. Consequently, the prior art devices having many user controlled functions and adjustments that are difficult to manage, are not adaptable for treating “mobile” tissue, such as animals. Therefore, the prior art's long term treatment sessions invariably require constant monitoring by the treating specialist, resulting in poor effectiveness.
Accordingly, there has been a long-standing need in the electro-treatment industry for devices and/or methods that allow minimal to unattended supervision of the treatment, while providing effective treatment. Solutions to these and other shortcomings in the prior art are addressed in the below detailed description.